Condition regulating apparatus



Feb. 23, 1954 G. E. PARKER 73 CONDITION REGULATING APPARATUS Filed June 19, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet l DINVBNTOM Gear-2 E mew-Ker Feb. 23, 1954 G. E. PARKER 2,669,973

CONDITION REGULATING APPARATUS Filed June 19, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 iNVSMFok I Gear-3e 6. FR-ewdelivered by the pump is maintained approximately constant by a spring loaded valve 35. which by-passes fluid to the sump when the supply line pressure exceeds a predeterminedl value.

Pressure fluctuations in the space 3'! to whichv fluid is delivered or from which it is released. when the valve is open are communicated to the; servo cylinder 13 through a piston 38 in a cylin-- site directions and relatively movable in response to pressure changes in the space 3'! and the servo cylinder I3. Herein, the piston is movable and the cylinder is fixed with one end constant communication with the valve passage- 31 and the other end connected to the passage: l1 leading to the servo cylinder. The piston has equal effective areas at opposite ends and isyieldably urged in opposite directions so as tol be maintained in a centered or neutral position f'- when the pressures in the passages ll and 3?." become equalized. ihis is accomplished by two springs 49 and 4! under some initial compression: arranged to act in compression between the pis-- ton and opposite end walls of the cylinder 39.

When the land 29, in response to a speed decrease below the prevailing speed setting of the governor, is lowered from its neutral position. opening the ports 28, fluid from the supply line:

32 will flow into the passage 3'! and the connected z.-

end of the cylinder 39. The pressure increase: therein will move the piston to the right, over-- coming and compressing the spring ll and forcing fluid out of the other cylinder end through.

the passage IT and into the servo cylinder l3. z.

The servo piston i2 is thus moved in the speedincreasing direction against its spring 15 and. other forces opposing movement of the rod E!.. The fuel supply and therefore the engine speed.

are thus changed to counteract the detected speed.

decrease. As a result of the displacement of the piston 38, the pressures in the cylinder 39 at the: two opposite sides of the wall 38 will differ from. each other by an amount determined by the area of the piston and the difference between the loadson the springs Ml and M at the new position of the piston.

In operation of the governor, a detected rise in speed causes the valve land 29 to be raised above the valve ports 28. This allows fluid toescape to the sump 36 from the passage 31 there-- by decreasing the pressure in the latter. Such; pressure reduction allows the plunger 33 to move under the higher pressure existing in the servo cylinder 13 thereby compressing the spring Gil and allowing the servo piston to move under the action of its spring in the speed-decreasing di-- rection. Again there is created a differential be-- tween the pressures in the servo cylinder and the valve passage 31, the former being greater than; the latter by an amount determined by the area. of the piston 38 and the loading of the springs: 40 and 4| at the new piston position.

The modifying or so-called compensating efieot for producing isochronous or constant speed operation of the prime mover may be derived advantageously from the pressure differential which accompanies any speed change and is developed between the servo cylinder i 3 and the valve controlled passage 31. This differential is applied to one of the valve elements to stabilize the system through a drooping characteristic which is then dissipated gradually until, under the new load, the engine speed has been restored 75 der 39, the two being yieldably urged in oppo-- Iii piston, the opposite ends of the piston having equal efiective pressure areas.

To exert the pressure difierentials above referred to on the piston 42 and in the proper direction, the upper chamber 45 is connected by a passage 41 to the passage 11 that leads to the servo cylinder l3. The valve outlet passage 37 is directly connected to the lower chamber 46 through a passage 48. As a result of these connections, the piston 42 and the stem 30 will receive a resultant upwardly directed force following downward movement of the valve stem in response to the detection of a speed decrease. As described above, this force is due to the pre dominance in the pressure change in the passage 31 and the lower chamber 46 over that in the servo cylinder [3 and in the upper chamber 45. Conversely, when fluid is released from the passage 31 in response to a speed increase, the pressure in both chambers 65 and 46 changes, but that in the upper chamber predominates resulting in the application of a downward force on the receiving piston 42. In each case, the modifying force on the piston 42 urges the valve stem in a direction opposite to its movement which produced the pressure differential, thereby producing the desired drooping characteristic.

Gradual reduction of the drooping characteristic is effected by progressively dissipating the pressure difierential through a connecting passage 50 between the passages 47 and 48 having therein a restriction which may be adjusted to vary the rate of leakage between the servo cylinder and the valve outlet passage 3'1. Herein the restriction takes the form of a needle valve 5| whose screw element is accessible from the exterior of the governor casing.

Assuming that the engine is operating above the normal idling speed and that the compensating system is at equilibrium, the parts will be positioned as shown in Fig. 1. If the load on the prime mover is increased and the speed thereby decreased, the flyballs will move in, allowing the speeder spring 22 to move the control land 28 downwardly to uncover the ports 28 and permit a flow of pressure fluid to the passage 37 and the left end of the cylinder 39, forcing the piston 33 to the right against the action of the spring M. Fluid is thus forced out of the other end of the cylinder and into the servo cylinder l3, and the prime mover regulator is moved to correct for the speed decrease. As an incident to this, the pressure in the lower chamber 46 is increased above that in the upper chamber 45 by an amount proportional to the movement of the piston 38, resulting in the application to the receiving piston 42 of an upwardly directed restoring force. The drooping characteristic thus produced is maintained by the action of the spring 4! on the piston 38 but starts to dissipate immediately by fluid leakage through the restricted by-pass 5! between the chambers 45 and 45. As the pressure differential decreases, the speed at which a given valve opening is maintained is brought closer to the normal speed setting of the governor, until the normal speed has been restored fully when "the pres'sure 'difirential has teen-seaweed and the piston "3 8 {returned to balanced p'o'sitio'n, th'e systemfth'enbeing"irr-equilflariums "If "the load *decreases resulting in a speed increase; theivalvelandi t -is raised by the iiyb'all's and the 'energiz'ation of "the serve "is reduced as above describedby, movement of the'pistont-s to theleft'against theaction'of-the spring 40? A pressure differential is "thus createdbetweenthe chambers' lfi and S46 resulting in "a force applied to the receiving piston "42 in a downward direction. .As before; thedroop; th'usprocluce'dis dis- .l'sip'ate'd by, the leakage through the needle valve, the .'normal speediof the'prime'mover being restored J'w'hen equilibrium againobtains with the return of 'the .bufier piston "38 "to balanced posh If, during normal "operation, the governor *speedLsetting is .changed rapidly to "the mini- .mum,- the vservo piston will -'move jquiclzly to the --noeloads.positionthat is to its limit at the rod end:of-the cylinder l3ib'ut, due to the :ine'rtia'of thefpr-ime mover, the .speed of the latter'willfollow at a slower rate and as a result o'f'this lag, the 'speed-of the engine will frequently dip below the-desired minimum ,value before corrective 'actionby the governor will occur. During su'ch amovement of the servo the'compensating force derived hydraulically as described above is acting downwardlywon .the .piston 42 and therefore in aa-'direction-zto increase-the speed setting of the -*governor-. 'In' accordance withthe present in- "ventionsthisforee is. preserved atthe'prope'r time ilrithe movement-of the servo and-thus'utilized to :produce': awsupplementalmodifying impulse "WhiGhTaCtS' on the icontrol'valve inanticipation of the-normal corrective action of the governor. As a"result,tthe speed-increasing-action which would otherwise await a -fall in thecenginespeedito an objectionably low' 'value -'is initiated as soon as a the servo piston reachesits low limit which .oc-

curs before the minimum speed is reached Th compensating jsystem above'described may be adapted re'ad-ilyto produce the desired anticmating-action 'by incorporating in the-leakage connection above: described an auxiliary 4 valve and, for thisipurpose, cooperates lwith arport B2 at -the end of thepassag-eA-l Which,,-it l will rbe observed, is "separated from :the space-aged] :by

which the cy'linderxfisis fconnected-toethe'servo.

-"In the ziorm shown'in zflig. Ltheportlit opens into the cylinder slightly"'below ithe'zposition-in which "the lower piston surface 761' is disposed when the piston is normal idlingcposition Whn the engine at or above idle :speed-,;-the port-'82 willbe un'covere'd'as shown ain Fig. i, Y and-the f leakage ii connection: r55] will; inf-notion in the no'rm'al manner "described above, the -fiuid i :piston moves in the speed-decreasing directionbelow and beyond theidle position, theport will be covered ithus interrupting the-connection r56 :soiasv toxretain the-tthen prevailing =pressure differentiala between the :-.servo cylinder and uthe -va1ve :controlled pliesage-.3fl.- As set :forth-uabove, I

the force applied to the pilot valve modifies'the swear effect "-in a direction' to prddiieetherfl- "sired; speed increasing action "of tl'ie governori-in anticipation of a further but delayed deorease in the lagging en'gine speed? "Objectionable clipping of the "engine speed"below* the -olesir'e'rl minimum value is thus avoided without imam way interfering *with' the -olesiredac'ition' pf the compensating systemat "or above the idlin g speed.

In this way, the compensating system'is litilized 'to perform a desirable-"and supplemental control function under conditionsin-"the operationofthe engine whe'n its normal compensating "actien is 1 not required.

In "a similar 'way, the compensating system- 6f the governor "may 'be utilized to prevent obje'ctionable ov'erspeedin'gof theengine when the load thereon isdropped-suddenly or "the throttle is, by sudden adjustment of the governor-speed centerof the servo cylinder [3, "and 'the-=:piston "is 'formed with twolands Stand "aXia-lly spaced apart far enough to uncover the port duringthe major-"portion of the piston stroke. As"the piston'nears the rod endo'fthe cylinderandthe throttle reachesthe lower-limit of its speed range,

the 'port "'62 1 becomes covered "by the land 64.

' Similarly, when the "piston "reaches its other or is extended from "the valve controlled passage 31 thiioughfapassage 66 to a port 61 opening intothe cylinder [3 opposite the'port"62.

The latter is connected through a passage '63'ito one side .of "the-needle valve 'ffil w'hile 'thepassage M on Ltheother Lside' of the needle valve leads directly to the remote end of :th'ebuffe'r cylinder 39. With this arrangement, and while thejport tween the chambers 25 and- 4B maybe dissipated by ileakagelthroug h the passage 41," the valveiil, passageK68,Mports.l162 an'd Bl', and the passages .66-andl48.. When the servopis'to'n [21s in either of its 'limitm, positions, the leakage connection will be .interruptedat the port 62 "thus preventing further dissipation of the pressure acting'on the compensatinglpiston .42.-

Inthe .lower minimum speed position of the pistonmwhen the port 162"is covered by the land 54, the auxiliary. modifying force will be "di- -rected. downwardly on the pilot valve plunger all-and willla'ct. as described above inavoi'dijng dip in e engine speed below the desired'mim- Conversely, SXI the servo piston reache its otheror high speed limit, the leal age"circuit willlbe closed by. the land 'EB'preV'enting equal- .ization of the pressure across'th'e displ'acedbu'ffer Mplunger and thus holding the force then being applied -in the upward direction to "the compensating piston 42; In thiskvay, van'increase in the engine above its desired max'im'u'm valueiwilll be anticipated, I and the necessary 'oo'rrection by the overnor will be "initiated earlier thus preventing objectionable overspeeding got the engine.

I- -cla im as lmy inventione -1.-.- ApParatus\-;for regulating a condition-haw ing, in combination, a servo including a cylinder and a piston adapted for connection to a condition regulator and movable through a predetermined range, a control valve having elements relatively movable in response to changes in said condition and operable selectively to vary the energization of said servo, a hydraulic system operable as an incident to a change in the position of said piston to apply a modifying force to said valve to restore the parts thereof to a neutral position, said system including a restricted passage through which fluid may leak to dissipate said modifying force, and a valve in said leakage passage opened by movement of said piston through the intermediate portion of said range and closed adjacent one end thereof, said valve including a port opening into said cylinder and adapted to be covered and uncovered by said piston.

2. Apparatus for regulating a condition having, in combination, a servo including a cylinder and a piston adapted for connection to a condition regulator and movable through a predetermined range, a control valve having elements relatively movable in response to changes in said condition and operable selectively to vary the energization of said servo, a hydraulic system operable as an incident to a change in the position of said piston to apply a modifying force to said valve to restore the parts thereof to a neutral position, said system including a passage through which fluid may leak to dissipate said modifying force gradually, and a valve in said leakage passage opened by movement of said piston through the intermediate portion of said range and closed adjacent the opposite ends 2-.

thereof.

3. Regulating apparatus having, in combination, a control device movable in opposite directions away from a normal neutral position, a wall movable with a part of said control device and having opposite efiective pressure areas, means coacting with the respective pressure areas to define closed fluid filled chambers, fluid pressure actuated means operable selectively according to the direction of displacement of the control device out of said neutral position to change the pressures in both of said chambers differentially and produce a resultant pressure differential acting to urge said device toward the neutral position, a fluid servo actuator having an actuated element movable through a predetermined range, said actuator being energized selectively in accordance with fluid pressure changes in said fluid pressure actuated means, a fluid connection establishing continuous restricted communication between said chambers for effecting gradual dissipation of said pressure differentials, and valve means actuated by said element and operable to interrupt said connection when said servo element reaches one end of said range.

4. Regulating apparatus having, in combination, a fluid pressure actuator including a fluid filled chamber and a piston movable in response to pressure changes in said chamber, means providing a fluid filled space separated from said chamber by a movable wall, means yieldably urging said wall in opposite directions, a control device operable in response to opposite deviations of a condition to respectively increase and decrease the pressure in said-space, a second fluid pressure actuator for applying a compensating force to said control device, means providing fluid connections between said second actuator and said space and chamber to energize the second actuator in accordance with the pressure differential between the space and chamber, means providing a continuous restricted fluid connection between said space and said chamber, and a valve in said connection maintained open during movement of said piston within a predetermined range and closed in response to movement of the piston outside of said range.

5. Apparatus for regulating a condition having, in combination, a servo including an actuated member movable through a predetermined range, a control valve having elements relatively movable in response to changes in said condition and operable selectively to vary the energization of said servo, a hydraulic system operable as an incident to a change in the position of said servo member to apply a modifying force to said valve to restore the parts thereof to a neutral position, said system including a restricted passage through which fluid may leak to dissipate said modifying force, and a valve in said leakage passage opened during movement of said servo member through the intermediate portion of said range and closed when the member is at one end of the range.

6. Apparatus for regulating a condition having, in combination, a servo including an actuated member movable through a predetermined range, a control valve having elements relatively movable in response to changes in said condition and operable selectively to vary the energization of said servo, a hydraulic system operable as an incident to a change in the position of said servo member to apply a modifying force to said valve to restore the parts thereof to a neutral position, said system including means for effecting gradual dissipation of said modifying force, and mechanism operable to maintain said dissipating means operative during movement of said servo actuated member throughout the major portion of its range and to disable the dissipating means when the member approaches one limit of the range.

7. Apparatus for regulating a condition having, in combination, a servo having a movable actuated member, a control valve having elements relatively movable in response to changes in said condition and operable selectively to vary the energization of said servo, a hydraulic compensating system operable as a result of a detected condition change to apply a modifying force to said valve to restore the parts thereof to a neutral position, said system including a restricted passage through which fluid may leak gradually, a valve in said leakage passage, and means responsive to changes in the position of said servo member and operable to open said valve when said member is in one position and to maintain the valve closed in all other positions.

8. Apparatus for regulating a condition having, in combination, a servo having an actuated member movable through a predetermined regulating range, a control device having elements relatively movable out of a neutral position in response to detected condition changes and operable to correspondingly vary the energization of said servo, a compensating system operable as an incident to a change in the energization of said servo to apply a modifying force to said device for restoring said elements to said neutral position and then to dissipate said force gradually, and means responsive to the movements of said servo member and operable as the latter is approaching one limit of said range to interrupt the dissipation of said modifying force then acting on said control device and thereafter retain the value of said modifying force prevailing at the time of such interruption.

9. Apparatus for regulating a condition having, in combination, a servo having an actuated member movable through a predetermined regulating range, a control device having elements relatively movable out of a neutral position in response to detected condition changes and operable to correspondingly vary the energization of said servo, a compensating system operable as an incident to a change in the energization of said serve to apply a modifying force to said device for restoring said elements to said neutral position, means acting after such restoration to effect gradual dissipation of the modifying force, and mechanism operable automatically as said servo member reaches one limit of said range to disable said last mentioned means and thereby retain the then prevailing value of said modifying force.

10. Apparatus for regulating a condition having, in combination, a servo having an actuated member movable through a predetermined regulating range, a. control means having elements relatively movable out of a neutral position in reable to correspondingly vary the energization of 10 said servo, a compensating system operable as an incident to -a change in the energization of said servo to apply a modifying force to said control means for restoring said elements to said neutral position and then to dissipate said force gradually, a device selectively operable to disable said dissipating means, means responsive to movements of said servo member and operable to maintain said dissipating means active during movement of the member through the major portion of its range, and actuating means for said device responsive to movements of said servo member and operable to maintain said dissipating means active during movement of the member through the major portion of its range and to operate said device to interrupt the dissipation of said modifying force as the member approaches the limit of said range.

GEORGE E. PARKER.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,117,891 Kalin May 17, 1938 2,478,753 Parker Aug. 9, 1949 

